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UCLA UCLA Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title Cities within Cities: An Urbanization Approach in the Gulf Countries Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/154746n3 Author Bamakhrama, Salim Salah Publication Date 2015 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Title Page UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Los Angeles Cities within Cities: An Urbanization Approach in the Gulf Countries A thesis submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in Architecture by Salim Salah Bamakhrama 2015 Copyright page © Copyright by Salim Salah Bamakhrama 2015 ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS Abstract Cities within Cities: An Urbanization Approach in the Gulf Countries by Salim Salah Bamakhrama Master of Arts in Architecture University of California, Los Angeles, 2015 Professor Dana Cuff, Chair Within Dubai, nineteen out of the original 112 mega-projects carried the word city in their names, a phenomenon that is common in Gulf cities such as Dubai, Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. To further explore this phenomenon, this thesis focuses on three aspects that affect the dynamic relationship between the primary city and the cities within cities (sub-cities) in the Gulf region with special emphasis on Dubai. First, the naming problem of the sub-city illustrates why the tension between competing identities produces a set of effects that could either enforce or confuse the overall urban identity. Secondly, this thesis demonstrates how Dubai utilizes two seemingly opposed growth strategies (sprawl and infill) in order to grow as a primary city and to integrate its sub-cities. The last aspect explores how Dubai’s internal governance structure enables the freedom and autonomy of sub-cities. This thesis proposes that the friction between sub-cities and their primary cities, whether conceptual or physical, is what produces and shapes modern Gulf cities. !ii The thesis of Salim Salah Bamakhrama is approved. Committee Page Sylvia Lavin Diane Favro Dana Cuff, Committee Chair University of California, Los Angeles 2015 !iii To Gulf Cities. !iv Acknowledgements الحمد ل الذي بنعمته تتم الصالحات All praise to Allah (God) for helping me complete this work. This thesis would not have come to completion if it weren’t for the love, prayers and support of my mentors, family and friends. I would like to thank my thesis committee Dana, Sylvia and Diane for continuously expanding my horizons with critical insights and different perspectives. In particular, I would like to thank Dana Cuff for believing in me and guiding me through the writing process. It is her Irresistible Metropolis class that had first ignited my interest in the cities within cities research. I would also like to thank my brilliant colleagues with whom I have enjoyed heated discussion and an unforgettable trip to Italy led by our great teacher, Sylvia. I am in debt for my family who have given me abundant love and support throughout the years. I am grateful to my father and mother for their genuine care for my success and well being. Without them I would not have become who I am. I would also like to express my gratitude to the government of Saudi Arabia for the generous scholarship program that facilitated my higher education pursuits. And lastly, to my beautiful wife Sara, thank you for bringing warmth to my heart with your bright smile. Thank you for being a great listener, a caring friend, and a joyful spirit. You inspire me to be and do better. !v Table of Contents Title Page i Copyright page i Abstract ii Committee Page iii Acknowledgements v Table of Contents vi List of Figures vii Introduction 1 Emerging Gulf Cities 3 Naming problem 13 Urban Growth Models in Dubai 18 Internal Governance Structure 26 Conclusion 29 Figure References 34 Bibliography 35 !vi List of Figures Figure 1: Dubai map showing the location of the 19 sub-cities in Dubai that will be the focus of this thesis. Adapted from OpenStreetMaps using ScribbleMaps.com. Figure 2: Aramco Dhahran Compound showing typical suburban pitched roof houses. The wall fence is visible in the foreground. Figure 3: Google Earth Satellite image showing Aramco Dhahran Camp and the stark contrast with the surrounding area. Figure 4: NASA Satellite image showing Dubai’s rapid development between 2000 and 2011. Figure 5: The map illustrates the 19 child-cities mentioned earlier within two rings around the historic center of Dubai. The lands between the two rings are already being speculated for projects and some are already developed. (see Figure 1 for more details). Figure 6: Rendering showing the Waterfront City and the manmade water barriers around the 25 city blocks. Figure 7: Perspectival rendering of the Waterfront City by OMA. Figure 8: Chart showing power networks in Dubai and how they relate to Dubai Government. Sub-cities are in red boxes at the extremities of the chart. !vii Introduction Not knowing that Dubai International City is in fact the name of a residential neighborhood and not a city in the conventional sense of the word presents a conundrum.1 It creates a confusion between the psychological and physical experiences of the city. Dubai International City is not the only case where this confusion is present but it repeats itself in Dubai and many other Gulf cities. This thesis focuses on the phenomenon of cities within cities and examines a variety of related aspects through several examples and case studies such as Dubai International City, Waterfront City and Jumeirah Garden City. The first chapter contextualizes the study within emerging Gulf cities and highlights distinctive markers that make the Gulf version of cities within cities different from that of the West. It further justifies why more emphasis will be placed on Dubai as a pioneering city in the Gulf region and a clear example where the phenomenon takes place repeatedly. This chapter ends with a literature review of the pliability of certain terminology such as “cities” and “megacities.” Over the following three chapters, this thesis tackles the issues that affect the dynamic relationship between Dubai and the “cities” within it in more detail. The second chapter considers the rhetorical use of the the word city and the problems that emerge from naming a mega-project a city. It focuses on how the naming practice affects the identity and causes friction between the city and the mega-projects it houses. The third chapter explores the various growth models adopted by Dubai in relation to mega-projects developments. It explores several sprawl and infill cases and seeks an understanding of how the two development strategies are used simultaneously in Dubai. 1 Cities are commonly regarded as entities that are larger than neighborhoods. !1 The fourth chapter explores Dubai’s organizational structure as a system of governance and economic development that is similar to that of large corporations. In this chapter, the tension between the various entities in the city is discussed as it relates to the autonomy, flexibility and experimental growth of the city. The Strategic Business Unit model, one of many business models adopted by the city, will be discussed in more detail. In the last chapter, a summation of the four chapters would be attempted to paint a picture of how Dubai and its subset entities shape their collective identity through the friction caused by the rhetorical use of terminology, growth strategies, and the internal governance structure. Figure 1: Dubai map showing the location of the 19 sub-cities in Dubai that will be the focus of this thesis. Adapted from OpenStreetMaps using ScribbleMaps.com. !2 Emerging Gulf Cities The Arab Gulf region is characterized by the agglomeration of the Gulf Cooperative Council countries (GCC): Saudi Arabia, United Arab of Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait. Due to the discovery and utilization of oil, the Gulf region witnessed a surge in development and urban growth since the 1970’s. Major cities, especially capital cities, were the focus of that growth because of their political importance. A brief overview of these cities can reveal the immense efforts that were made to prepare those cities for a global role. Significance in GCC cities comes from either their political role as capital cities such as Riyadh (6.4m), Abu Dhabi (0.9m), Kuwait City (4.0m) and Doha (2.0m) or from their economical role as sea ports on the Arabian Gulf and the Red Sea as in Dubai (2.3m) and Jeddah (4.1m).2 Out of all these cities, Dubai in particular played an important role in propelling the transformation forward for itself and for other neighboring cities by providing examples, lessons, and success stories of their transformation. These cities have developed their order and spatial organization through comprehensive master planing as well as through the development of unique components embodied by mega-projects dotted within the city. By a significant margin, the fastest growing city in the region is Dubai—with over 112 mega- projects planned within its boundaries.3 A year prior to the the 2008 global financial crisis, which caused the real estate market in Dubai a great deal of distress, Al-Manakh book was published by OMA’s Rem Koolhaas. It acted as a testimony, and at certain incidents as an applauder, to 2 Thomas Brinkhoff, "City Population," Thomas Brinkhoff, http://www.citypopulation.de/world/ Agglomerations.html. 3 Ole Bouman, Mitra Khoubrou, and Rem Koolhaas, Al Manakh (Netherlands: Stichting Archis, 2007). 365. !3 Dubai’s vision at its peak in 2007. The book appendices contained a 13-page table that listed every mega-project that was underway within Dubai. The total area that was to be developed at that time was 875 km2 with an expected population increase of 3.8 million inhabitants.4 The smallest project in that table was DIP: Dunes Village, a project that contained 19 mid-rise buildings which provided 950 residential apartments for 1,750 inhabitants.5 Whereas on the other end of the spectrum, the largest project was Dubailand—a city that was promised to dedicate over 185 million m2 for 15 millions tourists annually.6 Expectedly, the small project was completed in 2009, while the largest project is on hold until now.